NRA backs Bush call to let employees make own retirement decisions

(Washington, DC) - The National Restaurant Association today applauded President George W. Bush for underscoring his support for personal savings accounts during his address to Congress. Representing an industry with more than 11.3 million employees, the National Restaurant Association has been pushing for Social Security changes that do not increase payroll taxes and allow employees to make their own decisions about how to save for retirement.

"Social Security reform is an issue that is very important to restaurant owners and employees. As a result, we were very pleased to hear President Bush express his support for personal savings accounts, which let people make their own decisions about their financial future," said Steven C. Anderson, president and chief executive officer of the National Restaurant Association.

Anderson said the Social Security principles President Bush outlined mirror several of those endorsed by the National Restaurant Association, including preserving existing benefits for current or near-retired individuals and permitting workers to invest a portion of the payroll taxes into personal retirement accounts.

A nationwide survey conducted for the Association this summer indicates that an overwhelming number of young Americans favor personal savings accounts. Among individuals ages 18-34, 90 percent indicated they would like the option of investing a portion of their Social Security taxes into investments of their choice. The vast majority of restaurant employees are young people: more than two-thirds are under the age of 35 and half are under the age of 25, according to the survey results.

Anderson said the survey results are important to the National Restaurant Association because the restaurant industry, as the nation's largest private-sector employer, has more individuals paying into the Social Security Trust Fund than any other private-sector industry.